More than 25 per cent of the world s refugee populations live in sub-saharan Africa, where UNHCR also assists more than 7.6 million internally displaced people (IDPs). Overall, the region hosts almost one in three people of concern to UNHCR worldwide. U N H C R / F. N OY The number of refugees and asylum-seekers in the region grew from some 3.4 million at the end of 2012 to 3.3 million at the end of 2013. The most critical displacement situations, triggered by extreme violence and rampant human rights abuses, were in the eastern areas of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the Central African Republic (CAR) and South Sudan. As well as massive internal displacement, neighbouring countries received large refugee influxes. Uganda, in particular, registered large numbers of new arrivals from the DRC and South Sudan; as did Chad, from the CAR and Sudan; and Cameroon, from the CAR. 134 OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS The number of IDPs in the Africa operational region, which covers sub-saharan Africa, increased from 7 million at the end of 2012 to 7.6 million at the end of 2013, with significant increases in the CAR, the DRC, Mali, South Sudan and Sudan. UNHCR continued to seek durable solutions for refugees in Africa, with over 168,000 able to return home. Notable returns were to Equateur province in the DRC, Sudan and Côte d Ivoire. Some 10,000 former Angolan refugees were provided with passports and residence permits, allowing them to remain in their countries of asylum and integrate locally. Progress has been made in the implementation of comprehensive solutions for Rwandan refugees. In 2013, more than 6,000 of them returned voluntarily to Rwanda. Following a ministerial meeting in Pretoria in April 2013 involving all of the main asylum countries and Rwanda, agreement was reached on an approach to the cessation of refugee status, tailored to the situation in each of the countries of asylum. Similarly, out of an estimated 300,000 individuals who had fled Côte d Ivoire to escape the violence that followed the 2010-2011 elections, more than 225,000 have returned, including almost 20,000 in 2013. At the same time, more than 3,000 Liberians in Côte d Ivoire, whose refugee status ceased in 2012, chose to integrate locally or request exemption from cessation. State control was gradually reimposed in the north of Mali following an upsurge in violence in January 2013. The troubles had displaced an estimated 284,000 IDPs and some 169,000 refugees. UNHCR, in close coordination with the Governments of Mali and asylum countries (Algeria, Burkina Faso, Mauritania and Niger), rallied to provide life-saving protection and assistance. By the end of the year the return and reintegration of Malian refugees had begun.
AFRICA Newly arrived refugees from South Sudan construct shelters at Nyumanzi settlement, northern Uganda 135
AFRICA Working environment In general, refugees find safety and protection in almost 50 countries on the continent covered by UNHCR s offices, but there are areas where efforts to uphold the global protection system are severely challenged. The year 2013 saw instances of asylum-seekers and refugees killed in targeted assassinations or forcibly returned to their countries of origin. Even as new, large-scale emergencies erupted in the DRC, the CAR and South Sudan, millions of people displaced by earlier crises remained dependent on UNHCR for protection and basic assistance. Violence in South Sudan uprooted hundreds of thousands of people, but the country also hosted some 230,000 refugees, mostly Sudanese living in Unity and Upper Nile states, two of the areas most affected by the violence. Despite the challenges, UNHCR worked to fulfil its core mandate of protecting and assisting refugees, while at the same time assisting IDPs within the inter-agency framework. The political crisis in the CAR in 2013 deteriorated into a total breakdown in law and order and brutal inter-communal and ethno-religious violence. Hundreds of thousands of people were displaced internally and tens of thousands fled across the border into Cameroon, Chad, Congo and the DRC. While UNHCR ramped up its capacity in the neighbouring countries to respond to the refugee influx, it also had to reinforce its presence inside the CAR in support of the Humanitarian Country Team, where it assumed its coordination role in the protection, shelter/non-food items (NFI) and camp coordination and camp management (CCCM) clusters. In December, the situation in the CAR was declared a system-wide level 3 emergency. The volatile security situation in the three northern states of Nigeria led the Government to declare a state of emergency. Thousands of people were displaced internally and some 10,000 crossed the border into Niger, a country already hosting some 50,000 Malian refugees. In Mali, the political situation grew more stable, following presidential and legislative elections in the second half of the year. While security remained precarious in parts of the north, some groups of IDPs and small numbers of refugees returned to their areas of origin. Achievements and impact UNHCR remains determined to bring closure to as many protracted refugee situations as possible without compromising protection. In the United Republic of Tanzania, in particular, efforts are underway to finalize the naturalization of the 165,000 former Burundian refugees in the country, as well as the 1,300 Somali Bantu refugees in the Chogo Settlement. In Mali, 80 Liberian refugees received their national passports to enable them to integrate locally. The year also saw 19,400 Ivorian refugees return home with UNHCR assistance. This meant that 225,000 of the 300,000 Ivorians who had fled their country had repatriated. Some 57,000 DRC refugees returned home from the Congo in 2013. Indeed, most of the DRC refugees in the Congo have repatriated. Tentative progress was also seen with regard to the Malian refugee situation, with more than 14,000 spontaneous returns in 2013. However, some 150,000 Malians remain in Burkina Faso, Mauritania and Niger awaiting conditions conducive to return. UNHCR expects to have closed the chapter on Liberian refugees in West Africa once national passports have been issued to those remaining in exile who have opted for local integration. In Benin, the authorities have started issuing long-term residence permits to the refugees in the country, primarily Togolese. The Government of Zambia pledged in 2011 to offer long-term residency to 10,000 Angolan former refugees. By December 2013, more than 5,500 former Angolan refugees residing in the Meheba and Mayukwayukwa settlements had received approval for local integration. This paved the way for the adoption of a Strategic Framework for the local integration of 136
A F R I C A W E S T A F RIC A E A S T A ND H OR N O F A F RIC A C EN T R A L A F RIC A A ND T H E GR E AT L A K E S S OU T H ER N A F RIC A Population size 4,000,000 2,000,000 400,000 former refugees in Zambia. The framework will incorporate three components: alternative legal status, an integrated resettlement and advocacy for the development of refugee-affected areas. UNHCR also strengthened the selfreliance of refugees awaiting a durable solution through livelihood strategies. In Eritrea, a cash complemented by in-kind food assistance has been launched as part of a multi-year plan of action. Implementation of UNHCR s urban refugee policy remained a priority. In Kenya, a ground-breaking judgement by the High Court affirmed the freedom of movement of refugees and their prima facie right to live in urban areas. The decision, reached in July, was in response to a case challenging the legality of a government directive ordering the transfer all refugees from urban areas to the refugee camps at Dadaab and Kakuma. The directive had particularly negative consequences for the protection and wellbeing of refugee communities in Nairobi and other cities in the country. Based on national and international law, the Kenyan High Court ruled against the directive and halted its implementation. UNHCR served as amicus curiae in the case. Registration and documentation remained key protection tools in Burkina Faso, Burundi, the Congo, the DRC, Ethiopia, Mali, Niger, Rwanda, South Sudan and Uganda. UNHCR focused on training government officials and providing technical expertise and material support for registration and documentation exercises. Identity cards were distributed in the Congo, the DRC, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Uganda. Some 80 per cent of babies born in Kenya s Kakuma Camp were registered at birth. In Zambia, UNHCR and its partners conducted mobile birth-registration campaigns. Refugees Asylum-seekers Returnees (refugees and IDPs) Stateless people Internally displaced people (IDPs) Others of concern 137
AFRICA FINANCIAL INFORMATION Between 2012 and 2013, UNHCR s budget for its operations in sub-saharan Africa remained stable, standing at some USD 1.97 billion. Expenditure in 2013 reached USD 972.1 million, an increase of some USD 11 million from 2012. In most operations, needs quickly outpaced resources, forcing UNHCR to draw on unearmarked or broadly earmarked funds to continue life-saving operations. Acute emergencies commanded a large part of UNHCR s available resources in Africa in 2013, while solutions and livelihood s could count on only some 8 per cent and 3 per cent, respectively, UNHCR calls for more secure and dedicated funding. Some countries faced refugee flows on several fronts. Both Chad and Ethiopia, for example, host refugees from Somalia, Eritrea and South Sudan. Eritrean refugees in these countries benefited from UNHCR s out-of-camp policy, which aims for refugees to be allowed to live in host communities, rather than be confined to camps. For more protracted situations, UNHCR is exploring ways of shifting from emergency-response to self-reliance models, as it has done in the Dollo Ado and Jijiga camps in Ethiopia. UNHCR has also seen some progress in addressing statelessness in the region. For instance, nationality documentation and passports have been issued to South Sudanese in Sudan, reducing the risk of statelessness for this population. In April, the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights adopted a resolution on the right to nationality, with the goal of drafting an African Union protocol on the right to nationality across the continent. In October, Côte d Ivoire acceded to both the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons and the 1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness. In Madagascar, UNHCR cooperated with the authorities to facilitate a workshop to devise a plan of action to address the plight of various populations at risk of statelessness in the country. In addition, it conducted a survey of stateless or potentially stateless individuals among the Karana and Comorian communities to assess their level of documentation and socio-economic status. While the Federal Government of Somalia controlled parts of Mogadishu, many other areas of the capital and the rest of the country remained insecure. The bomb attack on the UN compound in June, which resulted in the deaths of scores of people, was a grim reminder that armed groups remain a threat to security in the region. On the other hand, there have been renewed discussions on durable solutions for the more than one million Somali refugees and similar number of IDPs in the region. The High Commissioner s Global Initiative on Somali Refugees aims to focus the international community s attention on the Somali refugee situation. It seeks to ensure that asylum and international legal protection are available for Somali refugees; that the self-sufficiency and resilience of refugees and host communities are improved; and that conditions for safe and dignified return are fostered. A high-level panel hosted by the High Commissioner in November 2013 saw Somali returnees, members of the Somali diaspora and experts from the political, cultural and humanitarian fields explore solutions and draw up a road map for action in the coming months. UNHCR assisted nearly 12,000 IDP families who returned to the Bay and Shabella regions in Somalia. Although there have been several spontaneous return movements, UNHCR s guidelines on protection for Somali refugees fleeing Mogadishu, South and Central Somalia, drafted at the end of 2013, reaffirm their right to international protection in light of the violence that persists in their country. The mixed migratory movements that confront the Southern African region have become increasingly complex. UNHCR used the South Africa Development Community forum in 2013 to launch its proposals to harmonize approaches to asylum, immigration, security and border control in the region. Throughout the year, UNHCR worked with IOM to make governments aware of the need to establish well-defined procedures for the identification, separation and differentiated treatment of asylumseekers travelling in mixed groups. 138
AFRICA Constraints Though the two large-scale humanitarian crises in sub-saharan Africa that flared up at the end of 2013 (CAR and South Sudan) have added to UNHCR s responsibilities, funding has been limited. The need to mobilize emergency responses to the CAR and South Sudan situations at very short notice compelled UNHCR to divert staff and financial resources from existing s. Security remains a major challenge for refugees, IDPs, host communities, partners and UNHCR staff. Insecure conditions for Sudanese refugees in Yida, South Sudan, as well as vast areas of CAR, parts of Somalia, northern Mali, southern and eastern DRC and north-eastern Nigeria, exposed people of concern and humanitarian workers to unacceptably high levels of risk. In addition to workforce and financial constraints, UNHCR has been affected by funding shortfalls at WFP, which has been obliged to reduce the size of its food basket for refugees, sometimes by up to 50 per cent. This has affected almost all refugee operations in Africa. The shortage of food is a matter of life and death in places such as Ethiopia, where South Sudanese refugees arrive in very poor condition, with very critical global and severe acute malnutrition indicators. Such conditions are mirrored among Central African refugees in Cameroon. Compounding the shortage of food are difficulties in gaining access to some remote refugee locations in countries such as Ethiopia and the DRC; poor infrastructure in, for instance, northern Uganda; and harsh climatic conditions. UNHCR s resources have also been stretched by its efforts to protect IDPs, work which has proven to be of crucial importance. In the CAR, for instance, UNHCR s presence has meant a life-saving difference to people trapped and literally waiting to be massacred. However, UNHCR is unable to do enough in the face of the violence unleashed by irregular militants, a problem that only international military and police forces can address. EXPENDITURE IN AFRICA 2009-2013 139
BUDGET AND EXPENDITURE IN AFRICA USD Operation Pillar 1 Refugee Pillar 2 Stateless Pillar 3 Reintegration Pillar 4 IDP Total CENTRAL AFRICA AND THE GREAT LAKES Burundi Budget 30,242,242 619,345 0 682,325 31,543,912 Expenditure 21,964,059 528,278 0 416,635 22,908,972 Cameroon Budget 22,800,657 782,931 0 0 23,583,588 Expenditure 12,843,700 122,301 0 0 12,966,000 Central African Budget 9,908,598 5,519,680 5,070,163 6,121,224 26,619,665 Republic Expenditure 6,645,811 89,570 0 4,870,840 11,606,221 Democratic Republic Budget 84,295,442 1,763,709 24,572,564 85,995,703 196,627,418 of the Congo Regional Expenditure 48,314,125 1,402,687 12,224,769 18,498,681 80,440,262 Office 1 Republic of the Congo Budget 32,086,000 0 0 0 32,086,000 Expenditure 14,687,582 0 0 0 14,687,582 Rwanda Budget 44,648,867 0 2,344,429 0 46,993,296 Expenditure 24,793,541 0 11,785 0 24,805,326 United Republic Budget 15,863,715 0 23,793,323 0 39,657,039 of Tanzania Expenditure 13,246,400 0 6,149,508 0 19,395,908 Subtotal Budget 239,845,521 8,685,665 55,780,480 92,799,251 397,110,918 Expenditure 142,495,217 2,142,835 18,386,063 23,786,156 186,810,271 EAST AND HORN OF AFRICA Chad Budget 188,029,566 0 0 12,826,683 200,856,249 Expenditure 87,376,854 0 0 2,279,475 89,656,329 Djibouti Budget 26,238,538 0 0 0 26,238,538 Expenditure 7,576,137 0 0 0 7,576,137 Eritrea Budget 5,677,661 0 0 0 5,677,661 Expenditure 4,138,818 0 0 0 4,138,818 Ethiopia Budget 192,994,600 156,279 0 0 193,150,879 Expenditure 105,749,131 54,642 0 0 105,803,773 Ethiopia (UNHCR Budget 1,516,514 0 0 0 1,516,514 Representation to the Expenditure 1,373,774 0 0 0 1,373,774 AU and ECA) Kenya Budget 251,377,167 110,000 0 100,000 251,587,167 Expenditure 100,573,591 0 0 0 100,573,591 Kenya Regional Budget 10,386,107 0 0 0 10,386,107 Support Hub Expenditure 7,565,176 0 0 0 7,565,176 Somalia Budget 9,031,162 0 0 46,278,097 55,309,260 Expenditure 5,579,493 0 0 17,567,356 23,146,850 Sudan Budget 70,712,283 3,809,253 0 42,208,158 116,729,694 Expenditure 30,007,815 1,738,391 0 18,827,719 50,573,925 South Sudan Budget 169,565,003 9,318,672 10,466,802 30,802,269 220,152,746 Expenditure 140,407,093 4,035,348 4,864,360 10,377,085 159,683,887 Uganda Budget 102,666,073 137,928 11,542,541 0 114,346,543 Expenditure 39,304,959 30,502 0-39,335,461 Regional activities Budget 5,185,970 885,210 0 0 6,071,180 Expenditure 467,114 0 0 0 467,114 Subtotal Budget 1,033,380,645 14,417,342 22,009,343 132,215,207 1,202,022,538 Expenditure 530,119,955 5,858,884 4,864,360 49,051,635 589,894,834 140
Operation Pillar 1 Refugee Pillar 2 Stateless Pillar 3 Reintegration Pillar 4 IDP Total WEST AFRICA Burkina Faso Budget 32,908,285 0 0 0 32,908,285 Expenditure 24,169,051 0 0 0 24,169,051 Côte d Ivoire Budget 20,022,340 1,809,192 4,632,223 1,381,809 27,845,564 Expenditure 11,525,928 1,185,138 2,082,935 823,984 15,617,985 Ghana Budget 11,769,404 0 329,926 0 12,099,330 Expenditure 6,766,510 0 58,555 0 6,825,065 Guinea Budget 4,107,174 0 1,319,319 0 5,426,493 Expenditure 3,292,988 0 956,201 0 4,249,189 Liberia Budget 42,559,986 0 0 0 42,559,986 Expenditure 22,365,145 0 0 0 22,365,145 Mali Budget 5,210,614 0 0 27,000,194 32,210,807 Expenditure 2,858,713 0 0 14,738,413 17,597,125 Niger Budget 56,451,690 0 0 0 56,451,690 Expenditure 30,655,972 0 0 0 30,655,972 Senegal Regional Budget 72,199,088 582,224 230,000 1,635,937 74,647,249 Office 2 Expenditure 31,328,467 337,350 108,155 1,351,822 33,125,794 Subtotal Budget 245,228,581 2,391,416 6,511,468 30,017,940 284,149,405 Expenditure 132,962,774 1,522,489 3,205,846 16,914,218 154,605,327 SOUTHERN AFRICA Angola Budget 4,697,332 0 0 0 4,697,332 Expenditure 3,580,250 0 0 0 3,580,250 Botswana Budget 5,457,590 0 0 0 5,457,590 Expenditure 3,394,882 0 0 0 3,394,882 Malawi Budget 4,438,716 0 0 0 4,438,716 Expenditure 2,730,366 0 0 0 2,730,366 Mozambique Budget 4,583,332 445,457 0 0 5,028,790 Expenditure 3,054,308 445,457 0 0 3,499,765 Namibia Budget 3,752,034 0 0 0 3,752,034 Expenditure 3,174,555 0 0 0 3,174,555 South Africa Regional Budget 35,572,435 2,069,208 0 0 37,641,642 Office Expenditure 10,748,974 354,818 0 0 11,103,792 Zambia Budget 14,996,456 0 0 0 14,996,456 Expenditure 8,009,418 0 0 0 8,009,418 Zimbabwe Budget 5,261,268 371,226 0 1,826,904 7,459,399 Expenditure 4,647,291 0 0 673,844 5,321,135 Subtotal Budget 78,759,162 2,885,892 0 1,826,904 83,471,958 Expenditure 39,340,045 800,275 0 673,844 40,814,164 Total Africa Budget 1,597,213,910 28,380,315 84,301,291 256,859,303 1,966,754,819 Expenditure 844,917,991 10,324,483 26,456,269 90,425,853 972,124,596 1 Coordinates activities in Gabon and Congo 2 Includes activities in Benin, the Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Togo 141
VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS TO AFRICA USD Donor Pillar 1 Refugee Pillar 2 Stateless Pillar 3 Reintegration Pillar 4 IDP Special Accounts (CHP) All Pillars Total African Union 100,000 300,000 400,000 Austria 1,021,711 1,021,711 Belgium 3,257,012 1,963,351 2,652,520 7,872,883 Botswana 13,288 13,288 Brazil 140,000 140,000 Canada 5,595,293 17,433,498 23,028,791 Central Emergency Response Fund 20,550,872 8,749,271 1,089,342 30,389,485 Common Humanitarian Fund for Somalia 410,000 410,000 Common Humanitarian Fund for 2,492,998 2,492,998 South Sudan Common Humanitarian Fund for 992,484 438,537 3,300,000 4,731,021 Sudan International Conference on the Great Lakes Region 82,000 82,000 Denmark 21,769,619 914,178 2,744,265 6,784,321 32,212,383 DRC Pooled Fund 925,471 925,471 European Union 45,165,375 548,950 7,123,665 275,482 53,113,472 Finland 7,024,266 7,024,266 France 2,655,335 392,213 323,415 3,370,963 Germany 23,736,835 23,736,835 Holy See 10,000 10,000 International Organization for 112,789 112,789 Migration Ireland 1,308,901 1,308,901 Italy 1,484,566 1,863,153 3,347,719 Japan 82,808,121 160,000 2,698,959 22,878,108 12,871,287 121,416,475 Liechtenstein 107,991 107,991 Luxembourg 1,298,701 3,051,948 4,350,649 Namibia 88,399 88,399 Netherlands 937,500 937,500 Nigeria 63,735 63,735 Norway 2,052,372 2,052,372 Private donors in Australia 1,618,682 5,907 101,160 1,725,750 Private donors in Belgium 847 847 Private donors in Canada 462,824 15,854 478,678 Private donors in China 761 1,977 2,737 (Hong Kong SAR) Private donors in France 1,542 1,542 Private donors in Germany 339,213 3,411,346 3,750,559 Private donors in Italy 12,771 186,567 81,559 280,897 Private donors in Japan 1,243,220 49,525 1,292,744 Private donors in Portugal 109,008 109,008 Private donors in Qatar 4,351,034 4,351,034 Private donors in Spain 31,397 137,498 168,895 Private donors in Sweden 40,518 40,518 Private donors in Switzerland 212,990 27,643 240,632 Private donors in the Netherlands 29,809,582 13,514 29,823,096 Private donors in the Republic of 699,759 699,759 Korea Private donors in the United Arab Emirates 200,000 200,000 142
Donor Pillar 1 Refugee Pillar 2 Stateless Pillar 3 Reintegration Pillar 4 IDP Special Accounts (CHP) All Pillars Total Private donors in the United Kingdom 60 13,262 13,322 Private donors in the United States of 1,413,657 68,455 1,482,112 America Republic of Korea 800,000 800,000 Saudi Arabia 2,000,000 2,000,000 South Africa 26,148 26,148 Spain 1,765,286 156,787 1,922,073 Sweden 2,591,068 17,083,795 19,674,864 Switzerland 5,713,799 183,585 3,337,718 2,661,085 11,896,187 UN Department for Economic and 410,880 410,880 Social Affairs UNDP/UNHCR TSI Joint Programme 1,564,619 1,564,619 United Kingdom 52,470,742 9,443,179 806,452 62,720,373 United Nations Children s Fund 88,300 180,859 269,159 United Nations Delivering as One 4,510,484 407,781 4,918,265 Funds United Nations Development 332,524 332,524 Programme United Nations Population Fund 386,134 386,134 United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS 1,224,847 30,000 58,000 1,312,847 United States of America 29,145,788 1,800,000 283,520,000 314,465,788 World Food Programme 202,030 202,030 Total 352,655,786 922,535 5,984,268 63,866,183 7,452,135 361,445,212 792,326,119 143